“I felt like it was slow, to be honest with you," Kelly said. "I’m not joking. We got to do a better job. We left the ball on the ground too much. We didn’t get the ball to the officials. We could have sped things up from a processing between plays, and that’s something we need to work on.”

This is an interesting admission from Kelly, and it's telling. It'll be difficult for the Eagles to get set and snapped much quicker, but the between plays procedure -- from the time the play finishes to the time the ball is spotted.

Poll

What grade does the Eagles defense get for the opener?

A.

B.

C.

D.

F.

The Eagles did not play as fast in the fourth quarter, and that's something Kelly said the team work on. Part of it is managing the game, which Kelly said he can do. The other part of it learning how to play at different speeds, which is an adjustment for this. Kelly compared it to driving 90 m.p.h., then going on city streets. Fatigue was a contributing issue, but it wasn't the reason for the relative ineffectiveness.

"You always sense fatigue in the fourth quarter, no matter what team you're on," Kelly said. "In the fourth quarter, you're not going to be as fresh as you are in the first quarter. The biggest thing is to be not as fatigued as the team you play against."

**

Some other notes...

- Cornerback Bradley Fletcher sustained a concussion late in the game and is being evaluated. The Eagles must adhere to league protocol, although Fletcher did not seem to think there was an issue in the locker room after the game.

It's not yet known how the Eagles will manage the lineup without Fletcher.

- Kelly said Michael Vick should not be used as a lead blocker on runs, but that Vick is not going to abandon the head-first slides.

"I think that's the way Mike likes to do that. I think that's the way he's going to do it," said Kelly, who later added, "I don't think at 33 we're going to get him to hook slide."

- Kelly will not contact the league about perceived fake injuries from the other team.